Shari’s Gone Country

Ok, so I’ve got about 25 trash bags of fleece that is unacceptable to most hand spinners. It’s not enough to send to the “co-op” as you really need at least 100 times that amount.

The chickens are all comfy in their wool-lined nests and won’t need new wool for many months.

Experiment time!

I’ve heard about wool being used for erosion control when you need to soak up (or divert) moisture as there is a company in Oregon who is making such a product. They’re also making dog beds with 75% wool and 25% cedar chips (odor control).

Here on the desert, we rarely need “moisture control” aside from when the snow melts too fast, or we get a rare summer deluge. What we need more often is a way to keep our sand from going to the neighbor’s, and another neighbor’s sand from coming to visit our acreage.

Believe me, it’s not a pretty sight. You can’t breathe when sand is blowing all around, including into your house!

My thesis: Lay down raw wool on high erosion areas after clearing the area of any small vegetation. Weigh it down temporarily until adjacent blowing sand can impregnate the air around the fibers. In theory, the trapped sand will be unable to escape. That includes any sand trapped by the fibers as well as the sand underneath the wool.

I’ve read a number of studies out of eastern Canada and the United Kingdom regarding the use of “wool waste” for soil amendments, so perhaps we can get an additional benefit. With virtually no way to irrigate our acreage, whatever is eventually planted will need a relatively rich soil, with awesome moisture storage ability.

What I don’t really know is how long it will take for the wool to break down. I do know it’s pretty slow to decompose, however, I’m counting on UV degradation, as our sheep always have “sun-bleached tips”. I’m also thinking the abrasion from the sand will have some effect. If it takes a couple of years, and holds our sand in place, then that’s a good deal.

Ever since we sheared the sheep, and I put up the “Our Fleeces” page, we’ve been struggling with negative feedback regarding the staple length. What’s a girl to do, ‘cept more research!

I called folks all over Utah, and finally found some nice “sheep people” in both Oregon and California who were able to provide detailed information on what kind of sheep we have, and what we’ll need to do to improve our little flock.

Now, I’m the one who is most adamant about our “hobbies” providing some kind of return whenever possible.

The chickens provide us eggs, which we sometimes sell. Of course, since that’s Mom’s hobby, she gets to keep any egg money for her own use.

The horses are strictly for our own enjoyment. Besides, I’ve met few horses that ever paid for their own keep, let alone their own feed.

The sheep, though… they’re a “cash crop” in my eyes. We breed them. They produce lambs to both increase our flock size and to sell for meat. I also expect them to provide some wool to sell… and that’s where we’re having an issue.

These sheep were represented as black “Merino” sheep by the person who sold them to us. I believe her as she was led to believe they were “Merino”. Only one small problem… their fleece isn’t as “fine feeling” as the Polypay, and that’s not right.

Shortly after I got here (Dec 2006) we bought a ram, who was represented as 3/4 Merino x 1/4 Suffolk. He’s a big boy and over the past winter, developed a rather nasty attitude.

After much searching around, I believe what we really have are a type (not sure of the breed) of sheep called “marker sheep”. They are the one’s large sheep stations use to help them count their sheep. By maintaining about 1 black sheep per 100 white ones, they can easily count the black one’s and know if they have the whole flock in sight.

What’s all this mean?

Well, it means the fleeces we have for sale, are no longer for sale to spinners, as there’s no way they can meet the quality standards. It also means the ram we have is not the right ram for us. He can’t improve the fleece, and with his attitude, he’s really too dangerous for we women.

Now, this has caused a bit of consternation around here, as I pretty much did the research, presented the “bad news”, and set forth to make corrections without much input from anyone else… not the best decision I’ve ever made.

I am making the fleece available for alternative uses.

For example, we use it to line our chicken nests. The girls love it! They snuggle down in it and when they lay eggs, they are so nice and clean. With the cost of straw, our fleece is very cost effective.

You can also use fleece (wool) as insulation, or even as a permanent mulch as it will “felt” in time.

This year, we’ve had a “January thaw”. Boy, really creates a mess, too.

This past summer, when we had to trench from the chicken water to lay the water line for the sheep, that meant disturbing a lot of the playa, the hard silica/sand crust that forms on the top of our soil.

We had snow at Christmas time, and I thought we’d be white until March, like last year. Well, that didn’t happen. We thawed.

You know what it’s like to trudge out twice a day in our boots? The mud is very slippery. The ground is frozen several inches down, so really, only the top couple inches of the playa have thawed.

For a while there was even standing water, thanks to a couple days of soaking rains. I felt so sorry for not only the horse, but the sheep and the chickens, too. When the dogs went out, they came in looking like little mud babies.

Sarah (my Finnish Spitz) hates the rain and the mud. She really doesn’t like getting her feet wet. She stands at the edge of the patio reaching out, but not quite touching the mud for a long time before finally getting desperate enough to brave the mud.

Now, Koda and Kiki just can’t wait for me to come in from the sheep pen. Not sure what the aroma is, but the taste is certainly irresistible. Their favorite time is when I settle into Bev’s big recliner and put my feet up, so they can reach my boots more easily.

Now, we’re awaiting another round of snow. This past week it’s been below freezing most of the time. We got that hay stack put down, but instead of rotating the hay, we just put the new stuff on the base of the old stack for now.

Then we moved a dozen bales up front for the sheep.

Our two boys, Algernon and Freezer (he’s really a wether) went to “ram camp” at the Davis farm today. Clyde and neighbor Bill came over to take charge of that operation. I horsed around with Freezer, trying to halter him, while Clyde lassoed  and haltered Algernon.

With me in the back of the pick up, the guys lifted the two boys up into the pickup bed. Clyde joined us, and off we went, to Clyde’s farm. The boys are joining his young ram for summer camp. That gives both our ewe flocks peace and quiet for lambing.

Not to mention… no more having to carry a big stick when you go into the sheep pen. Even Cindy couldn’t stay clear of Algernon.

It’s been a while since I posted pictures of life here in our little corner of the world.

One of our most prized possessions is our digital camera. It’s not real fancy, and we’ve had it for more than a couple of years… but we use it to record the good times and the bad. Even as relaxed as life is here… we use the camera a lot. It’s a huge memory helper!

The last photo journal was of all the “get ready for winter” projects; the wood is cut and stacked, the ewe’s are bred, the horses have new and expanded shelter, the hay is in and covered… and the chickens… well, they’re happy in their home, giving us nearly a dozen and a half eggs every day.

So, here goes… when it’s winter in Beryl, life slows down a lot…

The first week in December, just after getting the decorations up, we had snow in the late
evening. I was the only one still in my boots… so, here are two very quick pictures taken during the snow and wind. Later in the month, we had “thunder snow”, and twice we had to bundle up and hustle out to shore up the nativity scene and get the trees upright.

What an amazing site, to have the wind blowing better than 40 mph, snow coming down sideways, hearing thunder and seeing lightening within just a second as the storm passed directly over our house.

Sunrises are beautiful every morning… but some mornings they’re better than others. And yes… it’s really as cold as it looks.

We have time for more leisurely breakfasts, and with plenty of farm-fresh eggs, French Toast is a family favorite. Throughout the year, we most always have one meal together each day. On the weekends, it’s breakfast, generally on Saturday.

“Mom” always makes sure there’s enough for all five dogs, once we’ve had our fill. Now, the dogs… well, anytime we’re (make that “Mom”) are (is) at the table, once the serious cutting of food begins, it’s time to line up for “bites from the fork”.

This is December in Beryl. The first snow has come, and the very bright sunlight returned… time for some awesome picture-taking. About the only trees that grow well are the Chinese Elms. We have a row to the north of our driveway, and next year will plant a row on the south and then to the north west of the house to provide wind protection for the horses, and sheep.

The other day, Cindy heard a little noise outside her open bedroom window. Lo and behold here’s a little Screetch Owl, who’s obviously looking for a warm spot. He let me get as close as I wanted to get his picture. We’re not sure, but we think he’s probably the same little owl we found a week later in our driveway, cold and dead after yet another snow storm. Close inspection revealed a broken wing… was it a critter, or did he fly into the truck? We’ll probably never know.

Christmas in Beryl is fun… Bev plays Santa Claus (ok, so she’s not exactly “santa”) for the Senior Center. I thought this was a cute picture of “Mom” with Santa. Funny how their tops nearly match.

This year we got really lucky and “Santa” came to visit the dogs… boy, were they impressed. As long as Santa had treats, they thought that was pretty awesome, but pictures? Come on… as Coco put it… “You’ve got to be kidding!”

Kiki, Koda and Sarah figured Santa smelled familiar enough to hang around, especially since there were treats involved… the lunch mouths!

That’s right, I got here a year ago yesterday. The weather is eerily similar. There’s snow on the ground and we’ll be lucky to get above freezing today.

So, what have I helped get done in the past year?

The first project was to help get the sheep bred. That was the “cross-country hike” in boot-high snow with our two ewes to the neighbor’s farm. Of course we also had “the great sheep roundup”.

Next up, we built the chicken coop and got the little birds… how grateful we are for the fresh eggs. Can’t say we’re totally thrilled with the meat as we let the boys get a few weeks too old. It’s tasty… but chewy.

All winter long, and into the summer I helped with hauling hay, a chore that definitely put my body to the test. We now have enough animals that we can purchase our hay by the ton and get it delivered.

We built raised beds for a vegetable garden. After two years here, the family finally had a few veggies from the garden. Nothing to store away… but at least I’ve shown that it is possible to grow stuff here.

We’ve got the worm bin started. In fact, we’ve got two now. That amounts to about 10k or so worms happily munching their way through shredded paper and fighting for leftovers that don’t go to the chickens.

I raised my first “bummer lamb”. Freezer is still with us. Guess we’ll keep him for company of our ram, “Algernon”.

My suspicions about Chiquita a Polypay sheep that was supposed to be a ewe. “She” had horns, and like to butt whatever was in her sight. About May, her baaa began sounding like she had laryngitis, and got really deep. Our shearer (named “Flip”) confirmed she really was “Bruce”… and away he went… couldn’t produce a lamb, so of no value to us.

In May, we went to see Clinton Anderson “Down Under Horsemanship” and I got the bug… my prayers were answered late in summer when our mentor asked us to keep her yearling, Dakota.

Until the weather turned sour, I’d been training her in the round pen. It will be a couple years before she’s ready to ride, but want her to have solid ground training first.

In November, our ram returned from a visit to a neighboring farm to do his studly stuff. In about a week, he bred each of our girls… oh yes, our mentor had sold us the rest of her black Merino sheep. I am the shepherdess!

So, what about Sarah, the “Spinach Fits”… aka Finnish Spitz?

She’s loving every minute here. I don’t let her get up in the computer chair so she’ not been able to update her blog for a few months. She’s growing quite a crop of fur… even beginning to look like a Finnish Spitz.

She’s learned beds (the one’s belonging to us humans) are for sleeping on… and she wants her half out of the middle. She gets along well with the other dogs, unless they step on her feet… then she creates a real ruckus.

She’s discovered the chickens, sheep, and horses as well as lots of rabbit holes. About once a month, we go out on the acreage and “hunt”. Other than that, she has the run of the big back lot, where she and the other dogs dig, run and wrestle to their hearts’ content.

Most recently, I’ve chosen to get back into network marketing with a company called BookWise. It’s something that makes total sense for folks who live in “the boonies”. You buy books, we donate a portion of the profits to help children learn to read, and get away from abuse.

I would say, I’ve had a most fulfilling and successful year!

For the past two months, we’ve been getting ready for winter. The wood is chopped and stacked… in fact, some of it has been moved to our little front “patio area” under the carport overhang.

Today, we even bucked a bale of hay into the stable for use over the weekend. We’ve been working from under the blue tarp… You know… open the closest bale and pull books from it as necessary until it’s gone. We use about 9 books a day, and there are about 27 books in our bales… so we’ll have Friday, Saturday, and into Sunday covered.

The sheep are just fine… got three bales of hay within a short distance. The only problem is, it’s uncovered. So, the snow will be an issue… that’s life.

The chickens now have a heat lamp 24/7. We’re bringing in one of their 1-gallon waterer’s and rotating them morning and evening.

Bev works tomorrow and Mom is supposed to go with her to the Senior Center. I would be surprised if that plan changes, even though we’re expecting snow.

Last Saturday, we got three inches of snow in about an hour, just as Cindy and I were heading out to feed.

Bev and I had been watching the sky on our way home from Enterprise… it really looked mean. The closer we got to home, the meaner the sky got. I barely had time to tell Cindy “lets go feed now”.

I got to the chicken coop with their feed, when all of a sudden… the wind came up. I mean it shook the coop to the point the birds were startled. I had my winter coat on, but my cap and gloves were in my pockets.

So there I stood amongst all the birds clamoring for to get to their feeders, fumbling around trying to get my hat and gloves on… when Cindy trudged by, leaning into the wind to stay on her feet.

It was already sleeting… stinging our faces as we worked our way to the stable and the sheep pen. Within a minute or two, we were in a white out. The stable is about 400 feet from the house, and Cindy reported she couldn’t see the house from the stable.

I battled the wind to load hay into the sheep feeder(and get it to stay there), and to fill the water trough. Within just a couple minutes, our normally black sheep were light gray.

I retreated to the protection of the chicken coop and watched for Cindy… some 250 feet north of me, when all of a sudden… here came Bev. She and Mom were concerned that we wouldn’t find our way back to the house… the weather was that bad!

So, we’re ready for a repeat as once again the jet stream (and very cold air) is dipping down across SW Utah, and there’s a huge wet storm riding on the “Pineapple Express”. When these two collide over us… we get “heavy weather”, and that could result in snow.

The ski area a hundred or so miles east of us is expecting up to three feet of snow. They’ll be skiing in waist-deep powder!

I know, you’d think I ran away. Well, not really.

You see, there’s something about me you don’t know… once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur.

A couple weeks ago, I got an e-mail about a business launch… and it really turned my crank HARD!

First there was all the research…

I looked this thing over from the bottom up, the top down, left to right, right to left, inside out, and outside in. I discussed it with the other three gals, and we all agreed… I should jump on it.

So, after interviewing some other business owners, I chose to get started.

Come to find out, there are several teams rolling out the new business opportunity, and I’ve joined one of the top teams. Since doing that, I’ve been assisting with a full upgrade of the team site, so it will correctly reflect the corporate site.

So I don’t really taint this blog with all my “business stuff”, I’ve started another one where you can see what I’m doing to completely start over. I’ve got no list, and until Saturday, no online web site.

What’s been going on around here?

We’re “waitin’ on winter”. It’s really cold, but not as cold as it was last winter. Friday after Thanksgiving we started our first fire in the wood stove, and have had one going every day since then.

Morning chores now include bust serious ice off the water troughs. In fact, this morning there was ice all the way down the sides on the sheep trough. The chickens are getting alternate water containers… one gets thawed in the house and taken to them, and the other gets picked up to thaw, refill and start the process again (morning and evening).

Tuesday, I took the day off and went with the other senior citizens to Cedar City, where we shopped all day. Lunch at the Sizzler was excellent!. Our neighbor (Susan) and I got to shop to our hearts content in downtown Cedar City, where there’s a collection of the neatest little local businesses. Too bad all I could do was “window shop”.

Ok, time to get back to updating things… more about the business launch later, as it will have a positive impact on our little farm.

Now, normally I could care less about the baseball playoffs, unless the Seattle Mariners are playing. However, since I now share space with three Ohio natives… I’m slowly becoming a Cleveland Indians fan, as well as a Browns fan (only if Dallas or Seattle isn’t playing), an Ohio State fan (again, only if Oregon or Oregon State aren’t playing), and who knows what will happen during the basketball season. I’m no longer a Jailblazer, I mean Trailblazer fan.

At any rate, the past couple of weeks, our evenings have been spent watching the baseball playoffs. I mean, to the point that we’ve missed “Dancing with the Stars”, “Deal or No Deal”, “Extreme Makeover - Home Edition” and even, “The Bachelor”. Luckily, I’ve been able to catch re-broadcasts of “The Next Iron Chef”.

We did tune one TV to “Survivor” on Thursday night.

At any rate, now things can get more back to normal around here. It’s bad enough that the sun sets right in the middle of prime TV time, and I have to run out and put the chickie’s to bed. Soon though, the sun will set much earlier… even as early as the evening feeding time.

I remember last year, when I first arrived, we’d trudge through the snow at about 4pm, fighting a 20 mph hour wind and well below zero wind chill. Oh my, and that’s all right around the corner again.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be posting an autobiography.

Why? Well, because I believe you’ll find my story inspiring… and hopefully, you’ll discover no matter what you’ve done in life, there’s always more to be done.

I’ve got it pretty much written (had it posted on the domain in past years) but need to polish it a bit… that translates to take out some of the “sales talk” from a past life. I’m sure you won’t mind a bit if that stuff has gone missing.

Oh boy, the little chicks are rapidly becoming young birds. Monday they turned 2 weeks old and got the run of virtually the entire coop.

The coop is 8 x 8 and built on a concrete pad that was already here. Their outside run hasn’t been fenced yet, but will extend about 32′ west of the SW corner and 25′ north of the NE corner and then complete the rectangle. We’ll then divide the pen diagonally back to the NW corner, establishing two separate runs.

I’m finding an inward opening screen door made from 1/2 inch hardware cloth would be a perfect addition. That way I can leave the door open and also when I want to go inside the coop, it will sweep the curious birds inward.

Tomorrow we’re building a “junior roost” to help the youngsters get up the the bigger roosts. I found one dropping, so someone has been working on their flying skills.

As soon as I see birds flying 4 feet or higher, it’s time to clip wings. These are all heavy breeds, so don’t really expect to repeat the process more than twice as they’re growing. After a while, they’ll learn flying isn’t something they have to do.

The final home for both water and feed will most likely be below the nest boxes (which aren’t completed yet).

Our plan is to hold off on a lot of the final construction until we can let the birds outside in about three weeks.

One thing we did learn, and will be correcting is that our big black lab could dig her way into the coop with not much effort. She’s dug into the engineered “plywood” enough to get our attention. Now a roll of flashing is on our list. We’ll be installing it around the coop base and up the corners.